Bowe Bergdahl Has Refused to Speak to Parents

This undated file photo provided by the U.S. Army shows Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl.

AP

Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl hasn’t spoken to his family since he was released from captivity in Pakistan, according to an Army official.

Sgt. Bergdahl has refused to see his parents or speak to them on the phone, the official said. The decision by Sgt. Bergdahl, who returned to regular duty on Monday, suggests a deeper estrangement between the soldier and his parents than the military understood when he was released. Still, officials said, they don’t know the precise cause of the tension or when it began.

Sgt. Bergdahl’s father, Robert Bergdahl, emerged as a fierce advocate for his son during the five years that Sgt. Bergdahl was held in Pakistan by the Haqqani Network, pushing for action to get his son released. When Sgt. Bergdahl was released to U.S. Special Forces following a prisoner exchange that freed five Taliban detainees held at Guantanamo Bay, Mr. Bergdahl and his wife appeared at a White House announcement alongside PresidentBarack Obama.

The family has put sharp restrictions on what information can be released about Sgt. Bergdahl’s condition and has asked the military not to give updates about communication between him and his family, according to another Army official.

A spokesman for the family declined to answer questions about the communications between Sgt. Bergdahl and his family.

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